Ready To Stretch Yourself?

In crazy times, it seems so often that things get stranger before they get better. And sometimes, in the middle of it, good things happen at the same time the bad things are happening and it can be so confusing as to how to relate to it all.

A few years ago, I was on my way back to Cincinnati to see my mom for Christmas, and as I stepped down off the bus at LAX, I fell and BROKE MY ANKLE in three places. I was taken to the hospital, of course. The next morning I flew back to Cincinnati with a temporary cast and crutches. Ultimately I had surgery to put a bunch of metal in to hold my ankle together. And a year later, I had it taken out.

The miracles of modern medicine! That’s a great thing! I also got the value of having health insurance, even with very high prices.

Another more important thing I got from this experience is that I really understand what it means that “in one second,” things can change… in a big way.

And I like to look on the bright side of that saying. Yes, a big challenge could arise in the next second…. but something GREAT could also happen in the next second… or hour… or day…. or week…. IN YOUR CAREER!

But that something great can happen only if we put ourselves and what we have to offer to the world OUT THERE! Meaning out there to the people who we can help or be of service to — whether it’s having the script they’ve been looking for, being just the right actor for a part, or our ability to work as a team player.

My question is:

What are YOU DOING to really PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE for your career?

What are you doing to put yourself out there?

I often ask myself this question. And I find myself telling me the same thing I’m sharing here. We have to take action and do things that we are resisting if we want to reach our current goals.

I can name several areas of my life that I hold myself back due to some kind of fear in my head. Many actors and and screenwriters tell me they do too.

Holding yourself back is when you know certain actions you need to take to reach your goals, but there is some kind of fear or concern and you don’t allow yourself to do it.

For actors, it might be thinking something like, I know I need to get a new agent but I dread the whole process. Or it could be being afraid to ask someone for an introduction or a referral to an agent or even for a role.

For screenwriters, it’s being worried that someone will steal your idea, so holding back and keeping to to yourself indefinitely.

Many times, we hold ourselves back for fear of negative judgment. And we don’t want that negative judgment because it affects our image of ourselves.

If someone doesn’t like a new course I publish, I might feel like — oh, that means I’m shouldn’t be doing that.

If someone doesn’t like your script after you put all the hard work in, maybe you worry deep inside that you were crazy to waste the time writing it. Or as an actor, maybe the fear that you won’t find an agent feels like it means you should give up on acting.

The point is that our fears of judgment and what that judgement means is the very thing holding us back from achieving our goals — even when we haven’t even gotten the judgment we fear!

Or you might say… “But what if we were judged that way before and we fear that again?”

Ultimately, the fear of judgment goes back to our concern that that judgement will mean something about our identity and what we can or cannot do going forward.

If someone tells you in one way or another that you’re not good enough to achieve your dream, you can take it to heart, believe them, and let the fear hold you back from trying again.

Or you can see if there’s any feedback you can take fromit that will help you move forward. Then you incorporate it if there is and ignore it if not.

Or you can ignore them and approach the next person on your journey toward your goal, whether it’s an agent, a producer, a fan, a subscriber, a customer, or a partner.

When we are striving to achieve a goal, there is one thing we can know for certain….

We must stretch ourselves beyond how we already relate to ourselves to achieve our goal, otherwise we would already have it.

We must stretch ourselves.

This is a great time to get focused… and get in action.

What are YOU DOING to really PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE for your acting career or your screenwriting aspirations this year? Or any other area of your life for that matter?

Share it with the world. Declare it to the world….. Leave your comment below.

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